Top 10 post apocalyptic/dystopian books... Of all time!

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  • Опубликовано: 24 окт 2024

Комментарии • 122

  • @HunterHilly
    @HunterHilly 2 дня назад +30

    Great list! If you haven’t read Swan Song, you should.

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  2 дня назад +2

      @@HunterHilly I haven't. I'll have to check it out.

    • @HunterHilly
      @HunterHilly 2 дня назад

      @@rammelbroadcasting incredible post apocalyptic…

    • @dkropelnicki9819
      @dkropelnicki9819 2 дня назад +3

      +1 for Swan Song

    • @grantbensley4953
      @grantbensley4953 2 дня назад +4

      Swan song was very good

    • @christianpadilla8988
      @christianpadilla8988 2 дня назад +4

      Swan Song is awful. Do not bother with it. It's essentially a fanfic-quality fantasy story in which the good guys are purely good and beautiful while the bad guys are evil ugly devils. Everything works out for the good guys and they are made even more beautiful and pure while the evil ugly bad guys fail because they are dumb evil bad guys. Less important, but none of the details of the story make sense. There is no real explanation of how anyone is surviving in the post-apocalyptic world. No explanation for how they continue to find fuel and food for themselves. Despite that, lots of descriptions of violence and suffering. So, it all just feels unearned, unmotivated, and fake cheap allegory.

  • @t0dd000
    @t0dd000 2 дня назад +10

    Cormac. He has never written anything but greatness. My favorite is All The Pretty Horses. I take that back. I can never decide which of his is my favorite. Blood Meridian is often touted as his greatest, and makes The Road come across as a rom-com it's so bleak. They are all great. Recommend.

  • @fightingfitPT
    @fightingfitPT 2 дня назад +12

    Day of the Triffids is a great read

  • @shawnlinnehan7349
    @shawnlinnehan7349 2 дня назад +8

    No one mentions Justin Cronin’s The Passage, which is the first book of a trilogy. I like the story better than The Stand or Swan Song. I’ve read it twice.

    • @laurasedor4641
      @laurasedor4641 11 часов назад +1

      YES The Passage was really really good. So disappointed about the TV series.

    • @shawnlinnehan7349
      @shawnlinnehan7349 11 часов назад

      @@laurasedor4641 Wow, I never knew there was one. I don't want to sound all hoity, but I don't really watch TV. I tried to watch Game of Thrones, but I found it very cheesy compared to my imagination and watching it was ruing my remembrance of the books, so I stopped. I knew what was going to happen anyway, so why bother?

  • @EricAndersen-o9n
    @EricAndersen-o9n 5 часов назад +1

    Some mentions on the apocalyptic spin
    Swan Song by Robert McCammon
    Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank
    Lucifer’s Hammer by Jerry Pournelle & David Niven

  • @wenkaywc
    @wenkaywc 14 часов назад +2

    I agree with your final choice. The Road is one of my all-time faves. I recommended this book to my sons.

  • @MarianPowell
    @MarianPowell 2 дня назад +6

    Earth Abides by Stewart is the granddaddy of all end of life as we know it novels. It was written in the 1940s and is still the best for conveying what it would feel like to be one of a few survivors, meaning you have lost everyone and everything that made life meaningful. It's also very hopeful as people do adjust and find hope.
    Another that is more of a curiosity is The Last Man by Mary Shelley. She wrote it after Frankenstein The writing is very Victorian but it's an interesting read.

  • @AuburnDC-i7t
    @AuburnDC-i7t 9 часов назад

    Never saw any of your videos before this. I have read 5 of the books on your list and now have added the other 5 to my TBR. I'm going to watch some of your other videos now because it appears we might enjoy similar books. Thanks for the list.

  • @thomassears1432
    @thomassears1432 2 дня назад +6

    I would have included Earth Abides by George R. Stewart.

  • @lofilazy.
    @lofilazy. 2 дня назад +5

    The Windup Girl, thank you, no one on booktube talks about it and it's such a good book. It is a little hard to recommend though,with how graphic some of the scenes are.

  • @AngryArgie
    @AngryArgie 2 дня назад +3

    What I love about Roadside Picnic is how it went media full circle being made into a movie (Stalker by Tarkovsky) and video game (the Stalker games).

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  2 дня назад +2

      I agree. I can't wait for the new stalker game next month!

    • @archiemisc
      @archiemisc 2 дня назад

      Love the Stalker series, though they're very LOOSE adaptations

  • @msj7872
    @msj7872 День назад

    I preferred the uncut version of The Stand, but it also made me appreciate that not all editing is a bad thing.

  • @ilselauwers6009
    @ilselauwers6009 День назад

    Roadside picknick is my absolute all time favorite. Nr 1.
    And happy to hear you mention Dr Bloodmoney an other favorite of mine 🤗

  • @m.jguruvenkatesh8100
    @m.jguruvenkatesh8100 2 дня назад +2

    excellent top 10 list and i am happy that metro getting recognition .

  • @jaimeg819
    @jaimeg819 2 дня назад +2

    I love The Road too. One that I also really enjoyed was Station Eleven, love it as much as The Road. It also has a great adaptation (1 season) on HBO they changed a few things but both are amazing

  • @DarkHeartDance
    @DarkHeartDance 2 дня назад +6

    Thanks for the fabulous list. I would have included "Parable of the Sower" by Octavia E. Butler. If you haven't read it, I would definitely recommend.

    • @kacie-jobradford2632
      @kacie-jobradford2632 День назад

      I don't think I'll ever read another Butler after reading Dawn. 🤮

  • @IHRZGHKIP
    @IHRZGHKIP 2 дня назад +3

    Can't argue with any of your choices. Check out "Lucifer's Hammer" by Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven. And the "Island in the Sea of Time" and "Dies The Fire" by S.M. Stirling. Two sides of the same series. Also by S.M. Stirling is his "T2" trilogy, which is about a million times better than any of the awful Terminator sequels we received.

  • @braedyt
    @braedyt 2 дня назад +3

    One that I've recently moved up into my top 10 dystopian list is "I Who Have Never Known Men" by Jacqueline Harpman. It's almost a novella really, but such an interesting and mysterious world she created.

    • @kacie-jobradford2632
      @kacie-jobradford2632 День назад +1

      @@braedyt Love this book! 🙌 Have you read The Wall by Marlen Haushofer? I think you'd enjoy it!

    • @braedyt
      @braedyt День назад

      @@kacie-jobradford2632 had never heard of that one before, just looked it up and it looks so good, Going to get a copy asap, appreciate the recommendation thank you!!

  • @mattbaldwin1150
    @mattbaldwin1150 День назад +1

    Great list and hello from Australia. One of our most treasured literary authors (Tim Winton) has just released a new book called Juice. It's post apocalyptic Australia but not in that Mad Max style. Apparently it's pretty darn good. It might be your bag.

  • @anonymes2884
    @anonymes2884 2 дня назад +4

    Yep, of those i've read, no "crazy" entries :). Time to re-read 'The Road' I think, everyone keeps saying how depressing it is but I found the ending kind of beautiful (so maybe i'm just in denial :).
    (some recs in the same vein: "Ice" by Anna Kavan and "Riddley Walker" by Russell Hoban - both of which aren't going to be for everyone i'd say - and "The Dog Stars" by Peter Heller which is similarly niche in that it'll only appeal to humans _with_ hearts :)

    • @braedyt
      @braedyt 2 дня назад +1

      Love The Road. It's a masterpiece. Just picked up the graphic novel edition as well and looking forward to reading through that 👌🏻

    • @kacie-jobradford2632
      @kacie-jobradford2632 День назад

      It's a depressingly themed book, for sure. But, AT NO POINT did The Road make me cry!!! I think it can be quite affecting for dads.

  • @LyraStitchery
    @LyraStitchery 23 часа назад

    The scariest thing about 1984 isn't that Big Brother wants to control you. It is that Big Brother wants you to love him.

  • @ithrahmunchswallow468
    @ithrahmunchswallow468 21 минуту назад

    Stalker is my favorite foreign film but i realize that ive never read the book 🤦‍♀️
    Windup Girl is on my top 10 of any genre 🙌🏻
    Handmaids Tale is in my top 10 dystopian 🤓
    Great video 🎉

  • @markwebb1040
    @markwebb1040 2 дня назад +2

    For sheer entertainment I'd recommend The Rising and City of the Dead by Brian Keene. It's a zombie apocalyse with a bit of a twist. He's also got a couple related books set in that world as well as the Dead Sea series. Then there is Earthworm Gods (aka Conqueror Worms) which has more of a Lovecraftian feel.

    • @civoreb
      @civoreb 2 дня назад

      Keene is great in general. Working my way through his catalogue. I have read 8 of his books so far.

    • @CuCulain42a
      @CuCulain42a День назад +1

      I love Keene. The Rising is my favorite zombie novel. I got fired from a job to go to a book signing of his leading to, IMO, coolest notes. In my copy of Kill Whitey it says "I'm sorry you lost your job to get this signature."

  • @ZkL92
    @ZkL92 2 дня назад +6

    swan song would crack your top 5 for sure I'd bet

  • @tirarosaurioreads
    @tirarosaurioreads День назад

    Fahrenheit 451 is one of my all time favorites. Except for it and Brand New World and 1984 (which I loved as well), I haven't read any of the others. Thank you for the discoveries! Great videos.

  • @JennaWeisz
    @JennaWeisz День назад

    Really enjoy your videos! Helps me add to my never ending list of books to check out. :)

  • @JesseRad
    @JesseRad День назад

    I just wanted to stop by and say your videos are awesome. Keep up the great work!

  • @cindyrought772
    @cindyrought772 День назад

    Another amazing book is "One Second After" Every one That borrowed my book loved it.

  • @Already-Overbooked
    @Already-Overbooked 2 дня назад +1

    Fantastic list! I enjoyed all of these gems

  • @matthewmckinnon9298
    @matthewmckinnon9298 2 дня назад +2

    I’d recommend Earth Abides by George Stewart for a different flavor of post apocalyptic. It inspired Stephen King to write The Stand

    • @markwebb1040
      @markwebb1040 2 дня назад

      I just finished this one a couple weeks ago. I wouldn't consider it to be as action-filled as ,say, The Stand, but it's a very human story. I think it approaches the end of the world from a more philosophical perspective and eventually touches on things people would inevitably have to consider. I also enjoyed how it touches on how children would react to life when "after" is all they'd ever known. Maybe a little long but well worth the read.
      It's also interesting that it inspired King to write The Stand, which involves 2 groups on their respective odyssies, while Earth Abides mostly takes place in one neighborhood.

  • @douglaswilliams6834
    @douglaswilliams6834 2 дня назад +2

    It's a short story, not a novel, but I feel like a list like this should always mention "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream" by Harlan Ellison. Great list, BTW.

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  2 дня назад +1

      I love that story. I did a whole video on it and the rest of that collection.

    • @douglaswilliams6834
      @douglaswilliams6834 День назад

      @@rammelbroadcasting Oh wow! I'll look it up and watch it. Thanks.

  • @dr.crowsworld
    @dr.crowsworld День назад

    Not a book, but check out Before We Vanish (2017) and it's sequel Foreboding (2017). Both stories are about the same alien invasion and how humanity deals with a national crisis of an enemy that cannot be controlled. It is from the director of Pulse which is another under-rated dystopian as well.

  • @civoreb
    @civoreb 2 дня назад +1

    Great list! Love to see Metro and Roadside Picnic since they are lesser known to most audiences compared to the others on the list. I will list some below that I enjoyed that you might as well since you are a fan.
    Children of Men by PD James
    Summer of the Apocalypse by James Van Pelt
    Eternity Road by Jack McDevitt
    Wolf and Iron by Gordon R. Dickson
    Soft Apocalypse by Will McIntosh
    Slow Apocalypse by John Varley
    Swan Song by Robert McCammon
    The Rift by Walter Jon Williams
    The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood
    Earth Abides by George R Stewart
    The Postman by David Brin
    Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank
    War Day by Whitley Strieber

  • @sheepcouldtalk
    @sheepcouldtalk День назад

    Would love to hear a list of books to introduce young readers to the different genres you speak on. AP English teacher had us read Kafka on the Shore, and that was my introduction to Murakami

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  День назад

      @sheepcouldtalk OH my gosh, your teacher just threw you in the deep end like that. Wow. I would have started you on Murakami a little easier than that, lol

  • @cwolf44
    @cwolf44 22 часа назад +1

    On The Beach by Nevil Shute and Alas Babylon by Pat Frank

    • @romeronyc
      @romeronyc 52 минуты назад

      Two of my favorite post-apocalyptic novels but I must give the edge to Alas Babylon.

    • @cwolf44
      @cwolf44 30 минут назад

      @@romeronyc Read then both SOOOOO many years ago. I think Alas Babylon was the first post apocalyptic novel I ever read. And On The Beach has always haunted me. I have never forgotten them.

  • @ingridfitz5677
    @ingridfitz5677 2 дня назад +1

    That’s a great list!
    If you want to try more of a pulp dystopian novel try Deathlands by Jack Adrian. It’s a series that started in 1987 and went on and on with various authors using this same name. They are fun.

  • @ellagoreyshorrorstories7524
    @ellagoreyshorrorstories7524 День назад

    Great list. I wasn't surprised that The Handmaid's Tale wasn't on it, though. I'd also recommend The Chrysalids and Swan Song.

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  День назад +1

      I haven't actually read anything from Atwood yet. I was going to start with Oryx and Crake.

    • @ellagoreyshorrorstories7524
      @ellagoreyshorrorstories7524 День назад

      @@rammelbroadcasting That's a good one, although The Handmaid's Tale is better. I haven't read the sequels to Oryx and Crake (Maddaddam trilogy).

  • @stevenhutchinson8851
    @stevenhutchinson8851 2 дня назад +2

    I kept wondering when you’d mention The Road lol

  • @haxxy40
    @haxxy40 2 дня назад +1

    If you haven't read We by Yevgeny Zamyatin, you should try it. It's the OG dystopian novel from 1924, written by yet another Russian author. Some say it influenced the big three, but they deny it. 1984 is quite similar in my opinion.

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  2 дня назад

      I've heard of it but never read it. Now I want to move it up on my TBR because I always hear good things about it.

    • @kacie-jobradford2632
      @kacie-jobradford2632 День назад

      @@haxxy40 It definitely influenced 1984! Without a doubt!

  • @poppyjohnsen6068
    @poppyjohnsen6068 2 дня назад

    Two series that are amazing 1.) The Bane series by Keary Taylor and 2.) The Born series by Tara Brown.

  • @MrRosebeing
    @MrRosebeing 14 часов назад

    I Am Legend is a great book. I read it in a day a few years ago. It's that good.
    1984 at number three? Room 101 for you, then.
    Most of the others I can live without reading.

  • @NAVYSQURL
    @NAVYSQURL 17 часов назад

    1984...We are living it now

  • @SuperOldrocker
    @SuperOldrocker 3 часа назад

    Adrian’s Undead Diary series…the best

  • @LadyValkyri
    @LadyValkyri 2 дня назад

    M-O-O-N that spells 1984! Great books! Looking forward to reading a few I haven't heard of before, such as Canticle. Thank you for the suggestions!

  • @ilya1046
    @ilya1046 2 дня назад +1

    Great list! I just received Metro 2033, 2034, 2035 in Russian language. I should get to them after I'm done reading Boy's Life by Robert McCammon.

  • @johncarbis6688
    @johncarbis6688 2 дня назад +1

    I just finished The Stand today (for the second time) and am going right into Swan Song for the second time as well. Both are great! I will also say that I was let down by The Stand’s ending the first time but after reading it again, 15 yrs later, I think the ending holds up to the rest of the book.
    Great video and now I have some new suggestions I was unaware of. Thank you!

  • @courtneytrammell9474
    @courtneytrammell9474 День назад

    I have always thought yhe meaning to The Road is thay beauty, goodness and hope are everywhere, more so when it seems they are lost. It always makes me feel better.

    • @kacie-jobradford2632
      @kacie-jobradford2632 День назад

      @@courtneytrammell9474 My biggest takeaway is that, just because you are not a bad guy, doesn't necessarily mean you are a good guy.

  • @kacie-jobradford2632
    @kacie-jobradford2632 День назад

    If you have not read "We" by Yevgeny Zamyatin, you have to. Orwell potentially ripped his ideas from Zamyatin's book. Now, Orwell wrote the better book! 💯 But, if you'd like to see where it all (likely) stemmed from, check out We. It's another Russian author. There's lots of number usage in the book. Additionally, if you liked Orgy Porgy (Brave New World) you might enjoy We even better than I did. We was a ⭐⭐⭐ and Orgy Porgy was a ⭐⭐. I hope I've piqued your interest. Also, if you'd like to try a more quiet SoC style PA/Dyst book, check out I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman. It's a short, un-put-down-able book about what it means to be human. And if you like THAT, check out The Wall by Marlen Haushofer. Both of these were ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ for me.

  • @13gi0n
    @13gi0n 2 дня назад

    Highly recommend Blood Meridian.

  • @eded9157
    @eded9157 День назад

    Yeah, ever since i read The Road it has been my top 1 post-apocalyptic book/movie.
    I know people love Swan Song, but for me i was loving it until almost the half, i didn't like the turn the book take by the end.

  • @JesseKennedy-bw8ly
    @JesseKennedy-bw8ly 2 дня назад

    Excellent list.

  • @biankatoth1786
    @biankatoth1786 День назад

    Metro was so not what I expected, I don't know what I expected but not this. I really loved it and although it was grim, it was still uplifting for me. Am I weird?

  • @freespirit4574
    @freespirit4574 2 дня назад +1

    Great list. ❤

  • @Skytalez
    @Skytalez 2 дня назад +1

    Hey, what do you think about Postman by David Brin? Also I was surprised I didn't see Triffids Day there judging how influential it was.

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  2 дня назад

      I haven't read the postman, so I can't speak on it. I have read the day of the triffids, and it's pretty great. I just like these ones better 🤷‍♂️

    • @Skytalez
      @Skytalez 2 дня назад

      @@rammelbroadcasting You should read it, it's a unique take on the post-apocalyptic genre. I believe Day of the Triffids should at least have an honourable mention in the list of post-apocalyptic books. Another thing is that this is mostly a list of dystopian books at least half of them are not post-apocalyptic at all. And I have doubts that there are ten good enough purely post-apocalyptic books to make a top 10 list.

  • @lyndonkessler4766
    @lyndonkessler4766 2 дня назад +1

    I will not name the Book, you did. A super advanced civilization finds out their their civilization is based on a grocery shopping list. Just Sayin.

  • @lnuhfer
    @lnuhfer 2 дня назад +1

    Read swan song! It will go to your top 5.

  • @mirelaRo
    @mirelaRo 2 дня назад +2

    Metro 2033 Reading it, these days.

  • @TysonVaughan
    @TysonVaughan 4 часа назад

    Totally agree with The Road as No. 1. Another one I would put on this list (maybe No. 2 for me) is The Wake, by Paul Kingsnorth. In that novel, the apocalypse is really the twin blows of the Christianization and the Norman conquest of England. The narrator is a narcissistic reactionary (even by 1066 standards!) who gradually loses his grip on reality over the course of the story. The prose is extraordinary - stripped entirely of latinate diction, filled with archaic spellings and grammar and even a few Old English words.

  • @WeirdSchizo
    @WeirdSchizo 2 дня назад +1

    Is it okay to listen to audio books instead of reading or is that considered barbaric in book enthusiast circles?

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  2 дня назад +1

      @WeirdSchizo I say go for it. However you prefer to consume books is fine. I know there are some gatekeepers out there, but don't listen to them, lol. I almost always have an audio book downloaded to listen to as I drive or do chores, and I love it. I actually read the books the old-fashioned way when I'm not listening, so I kinda listen to a chapter, then read from the book for a chapter and so on. But you do you, that's what I say.

  • @RhinoViper
    @RhinoViper 2 дня назад +1

    Definitely some good ones...a couple i wasn't a big fan of.
    But some other options I enjoy.
    Swan Song by Robert McCammom
    One Second After by William R. Forstchen
    Day by Day Armageddon by J.L. Bourne
    Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank
    Anthem by Ayn Rand
    Wayward Pines by Blake Crouch
    A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
    Dead City by Joe McKinney
    The Giver by Lois Lowry

  • @miguelochoabotero
    @miguelochoabotero 2 дня назад

    What editions are those for The Road and 1984? they look so beautiful

  • @chadbain1827
    @chadbain1827 День назад +1

    Swan Song-Top shelf!!

  • @nickmur2896
    @nickmur2896 2 дня назад

    Jumping Out of Cars by Jeff Noon

  • @AloBal-n1g
    @AloBal-n1g День назад

    Good topic.the thing is that i see it in real life in retrospective.like 30 years.people arive from 3 world with nothing.psople dead sudenly...

  • @andrewborrs9443
    @andrewborrs9443 День назад

    I am legend the book is just vastly different from the movie

  • @JackManhire
    @JackManhire 2 дня назад

    Yes. Leibowitz was nuke. Happens again at the end. Ever read Lord of the World?

    • @rammelbroadcasting
      @rammelbroadcasting  2 дня назад

      I haven't read that one. BTW I picked up a book from the PO box, and I think it was the one you were talking about.

    • @JackManhire
      @JackManhire 2 дня назад

      Awesome. I hope you enjoy it

  • @AloBal-n1g
    @AloBal-n1g День назад

    Good talk.intel

  • @hharing960
    @hharing960 День назад

    Swan Song is terrible and ridiculous. I've never met anyone that enjoys it that also enjoys anything, well, good tbh. But they are obsessed. Hard pass.
    No Parable of the Sower or Handmaid's Tale is disappointing but the inclusion of Russian books is good.

  • @RyanRBurns
    @RyanRBurns 2 дня назад +1

    How does Swan Song not make this list? The Road isn’t that great.

  • @russ9117
    @russ9117 2 дня назад +2

    The Road is the most overrated book ever written. It's a couple hundred pages of Cormac using mediocre prose telling the story of a whiny worthless child who cries cry literally every paragraph. That's it. I just don't get it.

    • @kacie-jobradford2632
      @kacie-jobradford2632 День назад

      @@russ9117 I'm pretty critical in my reading... And I thoroughly enjoyed it. To each their own, I guess. Now, if you would like to collectively bash Orgy Porgy (Brave New World), I'm game. 🤣

    • @kacie-jobradford2632
      @kacie-jobradford2632 День назад

      @@russ9117 But, The Road is a couple hundred pages of the MC putting things in his pocket. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 But, it makes a great drinking game!